Workplace Safety and Insurance
Appeals Tribunal

Established in 1985, the Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (WSIAT) is the final level of appeal to which workers and employers may bring disputes concerning
workplace safety and insurance matters in Ontario. WSIAT has always been separate from and independent of the
Workplace Safety and Insurance Board.

The employer was a flooring installer. The Board found that subcontractors of the employer that did not employ help were operating under a contract of service as workers and that, accordingly 100% of their earnings had to be included in the employer's insurable earnings. The employer appealed the conclusion that 100% of installers' earnings were insurable.The employer submitted that Board Operational Policy Manual, Document No. 14-02-18, on insurable earnings in construction, was applicable. That policy stated that it applied to all decisions made on or after January 1, 2013. The Panel agreed with Decision No. 878/06R that the reference to the decision in Board policy should generally be interpreted as referring to the Board's initial decision, as opposed to the final one. The original Board decision in this case was dated in February 2012. Accordingly, Document No. 14-02-08 was not applicable.The applicable policy was Document No. 14-02-10. According to that policy, if an employer's records are not sufficiently detailed to indicate a division between labour charges and materials supplied, and there is evidence that the contractor provides major building materials, the Board considers the contract value to relate 100% to labour and the total contract value is included when calculating gross insurable earnings. That was the situation in this case.The Board correctly included 100% of the subcontractors' earnings in the employer's gross insurable earnings. The appeal was dismissed.